Disk harrow



Jan. 23, 1934. c SANDEEN 1,944,275

DISK HARROW Filed Feb. 26, 1932 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 gwoentoz 11 M052 C.Jande'wz,

E. C. SANDEEN Jan. 23, 1 934.

DI SK HARROW Filed Feb. 26, 1932 '4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Jam, 23, 1934. E. c.SANDEEN 1,944,275

DISK HARROW Filed Feb. 26, 1932 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 l Batik E I l-Hr l AAFig. f

gwue'niou Patented Jan. 23, i934 UNIT, STATES PATENT OFFICE ApplicationFebruary 26,

2 Claims.

The present invention relates to a disk harrow, and more particularly toa disk harrow having the disks thereof adjustable for various depths ofcuts and having the disks mounted for independent vertical movement withrespect to each other and other novel features of constructionhereinafter set forth.

In most disk harrows at present in use, a plurality of cutting disks aremounted on a pair of m frames positioned side by side in substantiallythe same horizontal plane. These frames are angularly movable withrespect to each other in a horizontal plane and the angular position ofthe axes of the two sets of disks controls the depth of the cuts of thedisks.

An object of the present invention is to make an improved disk harrow.

In order to attain this object, there is provided, in accordance withone feature of the invention, a frame mounted on a pair of supportingwheels which are vertically adjustable with respect to said frame, and aplurality of disks carried by said frame mounted in two substantiallyparallel rows positioned one forwardly of the other, the disks of onerow being positioned to out between the lines of cut of each pair ofdisks in the forward row. The disks are resiliently mounted for freedomfor individual movement and are resiliently held in a depressed positionso as tonormally cut to a uniform depth, but to permit upwarddisplacement of any of the disks when striking an obstruction. Thesupporting wheels may be locked in adjusted position or may be re-'leased so as to float against a spring pressure with respect to theframe to partially compensate the weight of the frame to be carried uponthe disks.

These and other features of construction and operation will be morefully brought out in the following description and the accompanyingdrawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a view in side elevation of a harrow comprising the presentinvention, one wheel being removed to more clearly disclose thestructure of the mechanism.

Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1 with the disks in plowingposition and adjusted so that the rearset of disks is lower than thefront set of disks. 7

Figure 3 is a fragmentary view showing the upper portion of a handlewith a grip latch secured in a releasing position.

Figure 4 is a plan view of the device shown in- Figure 1.

Figure 5 is a schematic view showing a forward and rear pair of disksand their relative furrows.

1932. Serial No. 595,291 (Cl. 55 -73) Figure 6 is a plan view of amodified double disk support member.

Figure '7 is a view in front elevation of the device shown in Figure 1,showing a sectional view through the ground in which the device isoperat- .30 ing, illustrating how the disks may rise over obstructionsencountered.

Figure 8 is'a central sectional view through the mechanism illustratedin Figure 1.

Figure 9 is a view in side elevation of a disk as bearing member showinga groove therein, a disk support member being shown sectionally.

Figure 10 is a view in perspective of the mechanism shown in Figure 1,the right hand portion of the device being broken away to increase the(1, scale of the drawings.

Figure 11 is a sectional view through a disk mounting similar to thatillustrated in Figure 9.

Figure 12 is a fragmentary view showing a frame member with a rotatableshaft mounted '75 thereon, said shaft having a disk scraper mountedthereon; and V Figure 13 is a sectional view through a single discsupport member with a disk mounted thereon. A

Referring to the drawings in detail, a frame A comprises an upper framestructure formed by front and rear angle iron members 3 and 4 and sideangle iron members 1 and 2. Each side of the frame A is formed with adepending side por- 5 tion consisting of an angle iron member 5 andbrace members 6, 7, and 8, which connect the upper angle iron side framemembers 1 and 2 to the lower side frame members 5. Angle iron members 9and 10 are mounted transversely between the lower side frame members andare secured to the front andrear ends, respectively, of the lower sidemembers 5.

A channel member 11 is secured longitudinally centrally of thetransverse angle iron top frame members 3 and 4, and extendslongitudinally of the frame and is braced by strap iron members 12 and13 on each side thereof, which extend from the forward end of thechannel member 11 diagonally downward and are bolted at their outer endsto'the front lower angle iron frame member 9. Additional strap ironsupports 14 and 1.5 are bolted from the lower angle iron frame member 9to the sides of the channel member 11.

Axle support brackets 16 (see Figure 8) are supported beneath the sideframe members 1 and 2, and beneath the channel member 11 and beneath alongitudinally extending frame member 17 to pivotally support an axle18. Theaxle 18 is provided with arms 19 and 20 on the ends thereof, andto the outer ends of each of these arms is secured a stub shaft 21 uponwhich supporting wheels 22 and 23 are rotatably mounted. A lever 24 isfixedly secured to the axle 18, and is provided with a dog 25 which isoperated by a hand grip 26 in a well known manner. This dog rides in atoothed quadrant 27 concentric with the axle 18 so that the lever 24 maybe locked in adjusted position. A link 28 is swiveled in the upper endof the lever 24 and is adapted to be swung over the grip release member26 to secure it in releasing position, as shown in Figure 3. An arm 29is secured to the axle 18 and a coil spring 30 is connected from theupper end oi this arm to the rear upper frame member 4 to exert acounter-clockwise torque on the axle when Viewed from the right side, asillustrated in Figures 1 and 2. A similar arm'31 is secured to the axle18 to extend downwardly therefrom and from the lower end of this arm isconnected a short chain 32, the forward-end of which is connected to acoil spring 33. The forward end of this spring is connected by means ofan adjustable eyebolt 34 to a bracket 35 secured to the side of thechannel member 11.

Pivotally secured to the sides of the channel members 11 and extendingforwardly therefrom are two heavy strap iron draft members 36 and 37curved upwardly'at their rearward ends and having a block 38 fixedlysecured between their forward ends to hold them in parallel, separatedposition, as best shown in Figure 4. A yoke 39 is provided across thestrap iron draft-members 36 and 37 and the upper end of this yoke ispivotally connected to an offset lever 40 which is pivotally mounted onthe forward end of the channel member 11. This lever is provided with aconventional dog 41 and hand grip operating member 42, the dog operatingin a toothed quadrant 43 mounted concentrically with the pivotal supportof the lever.

Harrow disk support shafts 42 are mounted rearwardly of the lowerchannel members 9 and 10 and a plurality of disk support arms 44, bestshown in'Figures 8 and 13, are mounted upon these support shafts topivot in a vertical plane thereon. The disk support armsare spaced aparta required distance by spacing collars or sleeves 45. The outer end ofeach disk support arm is preferably constructed in the form of a bearing47 with an annular wooden bushing 46 mounted interiorly thereof. A link48 is rotatably mounted in the bearing 47 and in the wooden bushing 46.The hub 46 is provided with a skirt 49, also shown in Figure 9, andaround the bearing 47 is provided an annular groove 50, one end 51 ofwhich extends longitudinally of the bushing beyond the skirt 49 toprovide an outlet for excess grease. The central portion of the hub ,48is provided with a square boss 51a which seats in a square centralopening in a harrow disk 52 which is of a conventional type. used indisk harrow's. A retaining cap 53 seats over the central portion of thedisk 52 and a bolt 54 extend n through a central opening in the hub 48is provided with a nut 55 which holds the retaining cap 53 and disk 52in position uponthe hub. A washer 56 is provided beneath-the head of thebolt 54 to ex tend axially beyond the hub 48 to retain the hubimposition in the bearing. r

A dust proof grease cap 57 is secured across the end of the bearing 47and is held in position by means of bolts 58 and 59. This co-verisprovided with a recessed central portion 60 to receive the head of thebolt 54 and to provide a storage chamber for grease.

In assembling this bearing the parts should first be well greased, and,after the bearing is assembled, the recess 60 in the cover should befilled with grease which will gradually work into the bearing in use.Excess grease is forced outwardly beneath the skirt 49 into the groove50 shown in Figure 9 and the rotation of the wheel carries the greasearound the bushing and outwardly through the longitudinally extendingportion 51 of the groove. This action also carries any dirt which mayfind its way beneath the skirt outwardly with the grease.

Disk scraper assemblies and their operating mechanisms are provided, onefor each set of disks, but, as these assemblies are the same for eachside of the harrow, it will be necessary to describe the mechanism forone side only. A scraper support shaft 61 is pivotally mounted inbrackets-63 secured to the forward upper angle iron frame member 3, anda similar scraper support bar 62 is mounted in brackets 64 secured tothe rear angle iron frame member 4. Secured to these shafts by means ofsplit collars 65, best shown in Figure 12, are a plurality of scraperblades 66. These scraper blades are mounted on offset arms 67 formedintegrally with the split collars 65.

The scraper blades 66 are secured to the arm 67 by means of rivets 68which loosely connect the scraper blades to theouter ends of the offsetarms. On the inner ends of the offset arms, bolts 69 pass through thearms and through the upper ends of the scraper blade, and thecompression coil springs 70 resiliently hold the upper ends of thescraper blades in contact with the arm 67. The shafts 61 are free forlimited longitudinal movement in the supporting brackets 63 and a coilspring 71 is mounted around each of the shafts 61 between the bracket 63and a washer 72 which is held in position on the shaft, as by' means ofa'cotter key73 to resiliently force the shaft in the direction whichwill bring the scraper blades 66 into contact with the concave sides ofthe'disks 52. The lower ends of the scraper blades 66 are curved toconform with the shape of the disks with which they are intended toengage.

An arm 74 is secured to the rear shaft 62 as by means of a split collar75 (see Figure 10) and a link '75 is connected from the upper end of thearm 74 to a similar arm mounted on the front scraper shaft 61. A lever76 is pivotally mounted on the frame A and is provided with aconventional dog and hand grip 77, the dog operating in a toothedquadrant 78 mounted concentrically with the shaft 61. A rod 88 ispivotally connected to the lever 76 and to the link 75 to move the link75 and the arms 74 by means of the lever 76.

-When the lever 76 is moved rearwardly the scraper blades will be movedinwardly toward the center of the disks, moving the scrapers to aninoperative position, while, when the lever 76 is between the upper endof the bearing 47 and the 1 lower face of the angle iron member 3 or 4to exert a resilient downward pressure upon the bearings 47. Cotter keys81 are provided in the upper ends of the rods 79 above the angle ironmembers 3 or 4 to limit'the downward movement of the rods 79. i

A modified form of disk bearing support is shown in Figure 6. In thisstructure an arm 82 is provided with an elongated bearing 83 adapted torotatably support two disks 84 and 85, one on each end thereof. The endportions of this bearing are constructed similarly to the right handendof the structure shown in Figure 11,. and a single bolt 86 extendsentirely through the bearing to secure two hub portions, not shown,similar to the hub 48 shown in Figure 11, in the opposite ends thereof.This bearing is of a length to hold the disks 8% and 85 in the properdegree of separation so as to reduce the number of support arms requiredin the construction of the mechanism shown in Figure 4. The front andrear sets of disks are aligned, as shown in Figure 5, the rear disksbeing positioned in longitudinal alinement with the spaces between eachpair of forward disks so that the entire area of ground over which thedevice is drawn will be operated upon by the disks.

Operation In operating the mechanism, the lever 24 controls the relativeheight of the frame, and the latch 26 and moving the lever 24 to theextreme rearward position on the segment 27. This moves the offset armportions of the axle 18 downwardly and raises the frame relatively tothe wheels 22 and 23. When it is desired to drop the disks to theirextreme lowermost position, this is accomplished by moving the lever 24to the extreme forward position shown in Figure 2. The disks can belocked in intermediate adjusted position by means of the dog 25 andnotched quadrant 27.

Longitudinal tilting adjustment of the frame A is accomplished by meansof the lever 40. The straps 36 and 37 and the interposed block 38 whichcomprise the tongue are connected to a tractor or other suitable draftmeans so that the forward end of the tongue is held in a substantiallyconstant position with respect to the ground level. By moving the lever40 forwardly as shown in Figure 2, the yoke 39 is moved downwardly withrespect to the forward end of the channel member 11, which causes arelative rearward tiltthe extreme forward and rearward positions of thelever 40 may be readily accomplished.

When it is desired to operate the scraper blades 66 the levers 76 may bemoved forwardly, bringing the scraper blades into scraping engagementwith the disks 52. By moving the levers 76 rear- "wardly, the scraperblades are moved out of scraping engagement with the disks and the lowerends of the scraper blades are moved inwardly toward the centers of thedisks 52. The resilient mounting of the shaft 61 and the resilientmounting of the scraper blades, as above described, prevent binding ofthe scraper blades with the disks.

In striking an obstruction such as rocks 87,

shown in Figure '7, the disks encountering these obstructions aremovedupwardly by the obstructions against the. pressure of the springs80, moving the rods 79 slidably upwardly through the angle iron framemembers 3 and 4. -Upon passing the obstruction the resilient force ofthe springs 80 moves the disks downwardly into the soil to theirprevious depths.

. It will be noted. in Figure 4, that the arms 29 and 31 to which thesprings 30. and 33 are respectively connected are not diametricallyopposite each other, but that both incline rearwardly when the axle isin the position illustrated in Figure 4. When the axle operating lever24 is moved forwardly to the position shown in Figure 2, the lever 31will be moved past dead center position with respect to the spring 33and the chain 32 will be wrapped partially around the axle. As thisoccurs the lever 29 will be moved forwardly, but not sufliciently tobring it to dead center position.

This, of course, increases the torque exerted by the spring 30 actingupon the arm 29, but practically eliminates the torque created by thespring 33 acting upon the arm 31. The arm 31 is positioned so that itreaches this dead center position at approximately the time the disks 52touch the ground, so that the forces of both the springs 30 and 33 willbe employed to assist raising the frame with respect to the wheels whenthe entire weight of the frame is supported from the wheels 22 and 23,and when the disks are 1 lowered so that they engage the ground, thesprings 33 will be practically inoperative and the spring 30 will remaininoperative. This reduces the spring torque on the axle by approximatelyone-half, assuming that the springs are of equal tension, after thedisks engage the ground, and thus greatly facilitates the verticaladjustment of the disks, whether they are in or out of engagement withthe ground.

When it is desired to operate the mechanism with the wheels floating,the latch 26 is locked in releasing position by means of the link 28, asshown in Figure 3, and when thus locked in releasing position thetension of the spring 30 maintains a slight downward pressure on thewheels 22 and 23, at the same time permitting the disks to seek theirown level of out against the spring tension.

The mechanism comprises a harrow incorporating many new and importantfeatures. The

fact that the disks are always at the same cutting angle, which angle issuch as to produce the maximum cutting efiiciency of the disks, assuresthat all of the disks will cut a clean, uniform furrow whether the outbe deep or shallow. The resilient mounting of the individual diskspermits any disk striking an obstruction to readily pass over theobstruction without placing the weight of the frame assembly on thedisks encountering the obstruction, and the springs 80 return the diskto its previous position after passing the obstruction.

The lever 40 permits accurate longitudinal adjustment of the disks, andthe scraping mechanism may be readily actuated at any time by means ofthe levers 76 to clean the disks.

The offset position of the disks, as illustrated in Figure 5, assuresthe working of the entire soil area within the range of the disks andprevents the creation of dead furrows and unworked 1. In a disk harrow aframe, wheel support.

means pivotally mounted on said frame, a pair of wheels mounted on saidwheel support means eccentrically of the axis of pivotal support of saidsupport means, a plurality of disks resiliently mounted for verticalmovement on said frame, adjusting means connected to said frame and tosaid wheel support means to adjust the pivotal position of said wheelsupport means, release means on said adjusting means to release saidwheel support means for free pivotal movement with respect to saidframe, and spring means connected to said wheel support and to saidframe to exert resilient upward pressure on said frame.

'2. In a disk harrow having a frame, support wheels adjustably mountedthereon, and a plurality of harrow support arms pivotally mounted inlateral alinement on said frame, a hub portion formed in an end of eachof said support arms, said hubs having a grease groove extendingcircumferentially around said hub less than the entirecircumferencethereof, one end of said groove being curved away from theend of said hub upon which a harrow disk is adapted to be mounted, asleeve surrounding said hub portion and covering all of said grooveexcept said curved end portion, and a harrow disk rigidly secured tosaid sleeve and rotatably secured to said hub.

ERNEST C. SANDEEN.

